Thursday June 19th, 2014

The exercise:Write about: the wildlife habitat.So, due to circumstances that seem to be beyond her control, Genevieve won't be back until Saturday at this point. Which is problematic, since I was counting on her being with us at the market because it's guaranteed to be a busy one between the remaining strawberries and the newly arriving cherries.It's still possible that she'll be able to return in time to help us out, but if she's not I'm sure we'll manage. Just would be a little less hectic if she's there.This morning the garlic patch was cleared of its final weed stragglers and then I got started on our onions. After dinner I wanted to clear out the area around our raspberry bushes, as we'll be picking them tomorrow and I didn't want to have to wade through the weeds in order to do so.Weeds, weeds, weeds...Mine:There are places, certain areas on this planet, that are so fearsome to behold that most men would continue on as though they had never laid eyes on them. The rare few will stop and contemplate them for a while, but they know better than to draw nearer.And of course there are the fools who choose to investigate. To dive headfirst into shallow, rock-strewn waters as though they are immortal.It is a clear sign that an area of the garden has been ignored too long when it begins to resemble one of these areas. When weeding feels less like pulling unwanted plants out of the soil and more like the destruction of wildlife habitat.At least now, after this evening's work, our helpers are less likely to say things like, "You have raspberry plants? Where?!"

3 comments:

I do hope Genevieve makes it back for you! Still, you've had to manage the market single-handedly at this time of the year before, so I'm sure you'll cope with whatever the Fates and Furies throw at you.Heh, and you should tell your helpers off: they're raspberry canes :) But I can see how they'd miss them, they're delightfully unassuming plants with a vermilion treasure hiding amongst the leaves!

The wildlife habitat"This feels inappropriate," said Vince. He was wearing a pith helmet, a khaki safari shirt with a namebadge, and beige shorts that showed off tanned, muscular calves. Next to him, Dave was wearing ex-army camouflage gear and carrying a sleek black rifle with little external markings."It's a safari," said Dave. "What's wrong with that?" He peered at Vince's shirt. "And why does your name badge say 'Dr. Livingstone'?""Yeah, but it's not the right place for a safari, is it?" said Vince. He scratched the back of his neck. "I mean, a safari's for shooting wild animals, right?""Yeah, so?" Dave was sweating heavily in his camo and was wishing that he'd thought to dress like Vince. That in itself was a disturbing thought and was making him sweat all the harder."So this is the AquaKitty Sunshine Sanctuary for Deranged Cats, Dave. That's like a wildlife habitat. Where they put animals to recover and stuff. It's therapeutic.""Where did you learn a word like therapeutic, Dr. Livingstone? Look Vince, it's a safari, we've got paying customers, and you're supposed to have a jeep here for them. Where is it?""We couldn't fit eight fat blokes in a jeep, Dave," said Vince, with a tone of reproach in his voice."Businessmen" said Dave, his voice heavy and menacing. "So you got two jeeps? Three?""An open-topped bus, Dave," said Vince proudly.

[I have no idea why there's a double post, I know I clicked the submit button exactly once! It did take blogger a while to change the page though, so I'm going for "internal error" and being happy it didn't just lose my writing :)]

The "Rules"

One: If you do the daily practice please feel free to share it in the comments - the best part of this concept is seeing the different places people go from the same starting point. I do my best to leave some feedback on all comments.

Two: Anyone can write. Everyone should. So write!

Three: This is daily writing practice. Practice. Not daily writing perfection. So let loose and write!

Four: Write for five minutes, an hour, all afternoon, whatever works. Just write!

Five: There are no deadlines. In fact, I love being surprised by a take on a prompt that's a few days old!

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About Me

I'm a 39 year old writer, farmer, and father to two boys living in Osoyoos, BC, Canada.
What do I write? Poetry, short stories, children's books, and I now have first drafts finished for two novels.
Why do I write? Because not writing isn't an option. I get antsy if I get close to the end of a day without having written something.
Daily Writing Practice is my main blog - come have a visit, won't you?